The winter months are busy at West London Physio, with ski injuries filling our diaries. Unfortunately skiers often under estimate what is required to get through a ski holiday in one piece. Many ski injuries are avoidable, so it makes sense to prepare for your season, and be ski-fit.
From December and during the ski season, West London Physio is providing a comprehensive Ski Injuries Assessment and ‘Get Fit To Ski’ program.
To reduce your risk of injury, and avoid painful thighs throughout your ski trip, we recommend you book an assessment 4-6 weeks before you ski. We will assess the important ski muscles for strength and flexibility, and assess your balance and core strength. We will then devise a specific program for you that will make an amazing difference to your ski experience.
1. Aerobic fitness.
Fatigue leads to a reduced skill level and a gradual loss of control as the day wears on.
To improve endurance, train for 30 minutes 3 times per week. Jogging and cycling are good forms of aerobic exercise. Incorporating the cross-trainer or stepper will help replicate the ski motion.
2. Core stability and balance.
This is crucial to ensure you have the strength and balance to maintain alignment of your legs, hips and lower back. Good core strength helps to both prevent low back injury, and (as an added bonus) improve control of your skis, potentially making you ski better!
Core stability work you can do at home may include single leg balance with eyes closed, single leg mini squats, or balancing and squatting on the Bosu at the gym.
3. Leg strength.
If you don’t have good leg strength, you won’t control your skis properly. Close attention must be paid to the strength of the quadriceps, gluteals and calf. These exercises should mimic skiing as much as possible.
The fit and shape of your ski boot can make a huge difference to the alignment of your knees and hips. The right support will also keep your feet supported and comfortable on the slopes.
At West London Physio we can now digitally scan your feet in the ski position, and prescribe custom orthotics specifically designed for your ski boot.
20% off custom ski orthotics in December and January.
If you mention this article when you book a ski foot scan in Dec or Jan, we will give you 20% off the cost of our custom made ski orthotics – usual price £260.
